Dubai and Nanjing join forces for table-tennis gala

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The Nanjing international cultural exchange association, the Dubai sports council and the United Arab Emirates table tennis association (UAETTA) celebrated on Thursday in a joint public event in the Dubai Mall for the closing of the eight-day tournament Ping Pong Dubai.

The Ping Pong Dubai Festival was initiated to promote table tennis in Dubai and to raise awareness for the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympics which will be held from August 16-28.

The celebration was held in the Dubai Mall's souk dome, the biggest shopping center in the world, and it was hosted by Lin Jun, the vice secretary general of the Nanjing international cultural and Dr. Ahmed Saad Al-Sharif, the chairman of the Dubai Sports Council.

Prizes were given to three winners of the eight-day tournament. In order to mark the success of the event, Chinese table tennis stars from Nanjing province and their Youth Olympic network will remain present in the souk dome and play ping pong against anyone from the mall visitors.

Lin Jun and Al-Sharif said the eight-day festival highlighted the growing friendly and cultural ties between the UAE and China.

"Dubai's relationship with China is important today and is set to become even more important in the future," said Al-Sharif. He added that 200,000 Chinese tourists visited Dubai in 2013, while the sheikhdom was already home of 200,000 residents from China.

Jun said the Ping Pong Dubai Festival was the first common event between both sides and a huge success. He encouraged Dubai residents to visit Nanjing and to attend the Youth Olympic Games later in the year.

Dawood Abdulrahim Al-Hajri, the president of the UAETTA also thanked the organisers and sponsors, among them Qatar Airways, and the public for supporting and participating.

The partnership goes back to a memorandum of understanding that was signed last year between China's table tennis association and the Dubai sports council that was aimed to intensify relations and to build up exchange programs between the two countries.

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